Summary
Fiends are some of the oldest and most fascinating monsters inDungeons & Dragonslore. Though the involvement of fiends in D&D led to a period in the ’80s where many suspected that the tabletop roleplaying game had something to do with cultist activities, in reality, the game would not be the same without them.
Whether a fiend appears in your own campaign as the patron of a spellcaster, the antagonist of the week, or the big bad evil guy (BBEG) of the entire plot, chances are players will encounter at least one fiend over the course of their adventures or, more than likely, many more than that. Thankfully, proper research can ready you to face these villains and live to tell the tale.
10They Come In Three Types
Demon, Devil, Yugoloth
Fiends is a larger category of monster which encompasses Demons, Devils, and Yugoloths. Demons are spawned from the infinite and unending chaos of the Abyss. They are creatures of pure chaos primarily interested in the destruction of all things.
Meanwhile, Devils are formed amidst the evil law of the Nine Hells. Despite being evil, this does bind them to a level of lawfulness that they must abide: hence their notoriety for partaking in deals. Finally, Yugoloths are some kind of bizzare fiend inbetween that embodies greed itself. They care only for themselves and always seek to profit as much as possible from any they encounter.
9They Evolve Through An Internal Hierarchy
Kind Of Like Military Ranks
No matter what type of fiend we’re talking about, all evolve through their own internal hierarchies in order to achieve greater power. Devils and Yugoloths must scheme their way to greater power by outsmarting and outmaneuvering their superiors, thus taking their place.
Demons, on the other hand, unlocked their more powerful forms through great wanton destruction. The more they killed and spread the chaos of the Abyss from which they spawned, the more powerful they became. In the cases of all fiends, archfiends (fiend lords) are also capable of promoting lesser fiends to greater forms in exchange for their loyal service.
8They Respawn In Their Home Plane
So Good Luck Finishing One Off
While all fiends can be killed in whatever plane you might encounter them, they only truly die if slain on their home plane. A fiend killed anywhere else sees its body dissolve into a pool of ichor, explode in a blast like a fireball, or disintegrate into a puff of digusting ash.
Then, they reform inthe Nine Hellsin the case of devils, the Abyss in the case of demons, or Gehenna in the case of yugoloths. Consequently, actually eliminating a fiend is an exceedingly hard thing to do and retaliating against their schemes was likely only to see them revisit you or your loved ones on a future day.
7Their True Names Have Power
Spellcasters Love Accumulating These
Fiends all keep the secret of their true names close as a creature who discovers a fiend’s true name assumes nearly complete control over it. Additionally, a fiend who discovered their own true name found it much easier to ascend to greater power.
As a result, the true name of any fiend is a well-guarded secret. Those who discover a fiend’s true name can not only use it to summon it to their side but bind the fiend into their service as well.
6Their True Names Change As They Evolve
Just Built Different
While true names are quite useful in ensuring you’re on the winning side of dealings with any type of fiend you might encounter, the tricky bit is that they change as the creature grows greater power. A fiend who receives a promotion in their hierarchy sees not only its physical form evolve, but its spirital form as well.
This change is also reflected in the change of the creature’s true name. When a creature tries to bind a fiend with an outdated true name, the fiend often feigns absolute obedience so that it might subvert its supposed master’s plans to its own benefit at a time they least expect.
5They Can Breed With Most Creatures
Yeah, No Thanks
Yet another terrible aspect of these evil beings is their ability to breed with most any creature. Various versions of specific half-fiends have been presented as monsters throughout the many editions of D&D, however, fifth edition presents only a few.
The cambion is the result of a devil breeding with a humanoid while the succubus is the result of a demon breeding with a humanoid. There are many different and much more specific forms of half-fiends that have been introduced in previous editions, however, that’s a story for another time.
4They Don’t Age
An Unfortunate Truth
One more thing that makes fiends difficult to kill is their effective immortality. For whatever reason, fiends ignore the ravages of time that most other creatures must eventually face. Consequently, their plots often function on a timeline that mortals cannot understand.
Beyond that, they can bide their time against mortal enemies beyond their strength by waiting for time to sap their strength from them before returning to claim their revenge. This makes them especially deadly enemies for any incapable of visiting their home planes.
3Their Kinds Hate One Another
Finally, A Good Thing
While devils, demons, and yugoloths are all considered fiends, that doesn’t mean they get along. In fact, demons and devils have been locked in a seeminglyeternal struggle against one another called the Blood War.
In this battle, demons seek to expand the domain of the Abyss across the entire multiverse while devils fight to contain them. Meanwhile, yugoloths attempt to garner whatever financial gain they can from the war while also searching for ways to maintain the conflict so that they can continue to profit from it.
2Archfiends Are Unique Specimens
Some Say An Archfiend’s Body Is A Perfect Reflection Of Their True Name
The internal hierarchies that fiends are subjected to see fiends evolve through a number of forms. However, at the end of this long road lies the distinctive elevation to the position of archfiend. These creatures have singular forms that are shared by no other fiend.
In other words, each archfiend is an entirely new species of fiend in its own right. This makes them especially dangerous as it is impossible to know exactly what each archfiend is capable of.
1They Are Thoroughly Evil
Don’t. Ever. Trust. Them.
You would think that this goes without saying, however, fiends arenotorious persuaderswho can sway even their most vehement enemies to their side. Devils in particular are especially good at this; however, all fiends are more than capable of engaging in the mind games necessary to subvert the truth of their kind.
As beings born from the terrible planes they call home, evil is part and parcel of each fiend’s nature. Ultimately, each fiend looks to perform evil acts so that they might further their own selfish agenda. Mortals who forget this simple truth are sure to fall prey to the fiends' foul machinations just as countless thousands have before them.
